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Transit funding in the federal transportation bill is in jeopardy!
You can take action on this alert by reading the information below and following the
directions at the bottom.
Ensuring that all transit funding is preserved in the final federal transportation bill.
The Transportation Equity Act or "TEA" was first passed by Congress in 1991. It allows a percentage of federal transportation dollars to be used for non-automotive projects, like light rail, commuter rail, bicycle paths and trails. Federal TEA money paid for many of Minnesota's bike paths and the construction costs for much of the Hiawatha Light Rail Line. It would also pay the lion's share of construction costs for Northstar Commuter Rail and provide critical funding for future commuter rail and LRT lines, such as the University Avenue corridor.
During the next six years, the federal government will spend over $255 billion dollars on transportation. Of this, less than 20% will go to public transit, light rail and commuter rail. Some in Congress want to cut transit funding still further, even as they significantly increase spending on highways. This is an unbalanced and short-sighted transportation policy and it will have a significant negative impact on the state of Minnesota and the nation.
Congress is on break right now until Labor Day. Our Representatives and Senators are in their home districts and this is a very important time to send them a message before they return to Washington and finalize the bill.
Please click on the link below to send a message to your US Representative and Senators about this issue. Urge them to support greater transit funding in the TEA-21 reauthorization.
Your message will be sent to each of the following targets:
Your U.S. Representative
Your U.S. Senator
A sample message appears below, which you may edit before sending.
I strongly support increased funding for transit in the federal transportation bill (TEA-21).
Dear Representative,
I am writing to urge you to preserve or increase transit funding in the federal TEA-21 reauthorization, currently being debated in Congress.
The Transportation Equity Act or "TEA" was first passed by Congress in 1991. It allows a percentage of federal transportation dollars to be used for non-automotive projects, like light rail, commuter rail, bicycle paths and trails. Federal TEA money paid for many of Minnesota's bike paths and paid construction costs for much of the Hiawatha Light Rail Line. It would also pay the lion's share of construction costs for Northstar Commuter Rail and provide critical funding for future commuter rail and LRT lines.
The TEA legislation is currently stuck in a House/Senate conference committee. I know that some members of Congress are trying to eliminate or reduce transit funding in the bill. They want to greatly curtail the "New Starts" program which provided money for Hiawatha LRT and they want to reduce funding for Amtrak, forcing it to eliminate most of its trains outside the northeast including the Empire Builder which serves Minnesota and the Twin Cities. Lastly, they want to weaken "4(f)" protections for historic and cultural sites that prevent their destruction by highways.
This is an unbalanced and short-sighted transportation policy and it will have a significant negative impact on the state of Minnesota and the nation. I strongly urge you to do what you can to increase or at least maintain current federal transit funding levels.
Sincerely,
Your name and address here
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This Action Alert Campaign is Closed.
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